SUBJECT/RECOMMENDATION:
Title
Approve a Lease, Property Operation, and Grant Agreement between the Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA), the City of Clearwater (City), and the Clearwater Urban Leadership Coalition (CULC); and authorize the appropriate officials to execute same.
Body
SUMMARY:
The purpose of this item is to approve a Lease, Property Operation, and Grant Agreement between the City, the CRA, and CULC (Lease). The City and CRA jointly issued a request for letters of interest (LOI) for an operator of a shipping container village to whom the City and CRA would lease certain real property to for such purpose.
The CRA-owned property is addressed as 1325 N. Martin Luther King, Jr. Avenue, Clearwater, FL 33755 and the City-owned properties are addressed as 1321 N. Martin Luther King, Jr. Avenue, Clearwater, FL 33755; 1317 N. Martin Luther King, Jr. Avenue, Clearwater, FL 33755; and 1106 Tangerine Street, Clearwater, FL 33755 (collectively, the aforementioned properties are the “Project Site”). The legal description for the CRA-owned property is provided below:
Lot 16 of Block "C" of Greenwood Park, according to the map or plat thereof as recorded in Plat Book 8, Page 22 of the Public Records of Pinellas County, Florida.
On January 13, 2025, the CRA Board of Trustees selected CULC as the winner of the request for LOI and authorized the CRA Director to enter lease negotiations with CULC.
The Clearwater Urban Leadership Coalition (CULC) proposes to establish a shipping container village consisting of an assortment of not less than five shipping containers repurposed to provide commercial space to businesses offering retail, dining, and entertainment experiences at the Project Site.
The Lease shall be for an initial term of ten years with two five-year renewal periods at the sole option of CULC. Rent shall be due in installments of $2,000.00 per month increasing 3% annually. However, no rent shall be due for the first four years of the initial term. Additionally, the Lease also contains a development timeline that CULC must meet to maintain compliance with the Lease. Under the Lease, the CRA will also be giving CULC a grant in the amount of $500,000.00 to aid in the development of the village. Additional details on rent, expenses, and terms are outlined in the Lease.
Staff recommends approval of the Lease.
APPROPRIATION CODE AND AMOUNT:
N/A
STRATEGIC PRIORITY:
2.1 Strengthen public-private initiatives that attract, develop, and retain diversified business sectors.
2.2 Cultivate a business climate that welcomes entrepreneurship, inspires local investment, and supports Eco-friendly enterprises, and encourages high-quality job growth.
